Company name and description: Kenny's Cajun Corn, a
manufacturer of Cajun-flavored microwave popcorn in Fisherville,
Kentucky

Starting point: Less than $100,000 in 1998

2000 sales projections: $1.5 million The story: "My
grandfather was from New Orleans, and he taught me Cajun was a
flavor, not a temperature," Kenny says. He had been making his
own Cajun spice blend for some time when he accidentally discovered
how good it tasted sprinkled on popcorn. "I felt like God gave
me a Hula-Hoop, and I'd better do something with it," he
says. So he formed the company, perfected the product and began
shipping in January 1999.

A family business: To maintain quality, Kenny handles all
the manufacturing and processing in-house with the help of his wife
and two younger children. His two older children live in Chicago
and work as distributors.

Circumventing the system: Having built a network of
independent distributors who handle the sales side, Kenny ships
directly to the stores, bypassing the traditional food distribution
system. "It comes right off the truck and goes onto the
shelf," he says. And retailers are discouraged from buying
quantities that aren't likely to sell within a month or two.
"I try to keep my popcorn less than three months old from the
day I make it until the day it goes in [the customer's]
mouth," he says.

Delighting the customer: Kenny includes a 13th package
with each order of 12, plus a letter explaining the extra package
is for the customer--an inexpensive but effective way to reach new
consumers.

Looking ahead: Kenny's goal is to have 1.1 percent of
the microwave popcorn market, worth $11.5 million, by 2004.
Currently, he has distributors in seven states, is negotiating for
three more and expects to have distributors in all 48 contiguous
states by the end of this year. He also plans to add other
Cajun-flavored snack food items, such as pretzels and peanuts, to
his product line.